What Happened to You, Damon?
by WeAllFloatDownHere
Summary: Stefan comes home to find a baby Damon waiting for him. Little Damon is afraid that 'Steffy' will leave him, a leftover trait from his human life. Stefan must take care of his baby brother and get him back to normal. De-aged Damon/Protective Brotherly Stefan.
1. Chapter 1

**What Happened to You, Damon? **

**This is set in between season two and season three of the TV show—however, Stefan is not the Ripper, I haven't seen Season 3 yet and I don't feel like doing that. This is the day after Damon was healed. We're going to say Stefan fled and escaped from Klaus. **

**If there are any book references, let me know. This was originally based on the books and I changed it.**

To say Stefan Salvatore was surprised would be a great understatement.

He stared down at the toddler on the floor through narrowed eyes, wondering how the child had gotten in.

The toddler stared back through big blue eyes. "Steffy?" he whimpered.

Stefan started, shocked.

Then, remembering his manners, he knelt in front of the little toddler. "Hey buddy… what's your name? How did you get in here?"

The kid huffed. "You knows my name, Steffy."

Something clicked in Stefan's mind, and his eyes widened. "Damon." At his baby brother's nod, he continued, "What did you do now? How did you get yourself turned into a baby?"

Damon merely stared at Stefan.

"Damn it, Damon. Answer me. I'm trying to help you."

When Damon opened his mouth, Stefan thought he would answer, but he began to cry instead. Sighing, Stefan lowered himself to the ground and opened his arms.

"Alright, alright, I'm sorry. Come here, baby."

The toddler hesitated, but then got up, wobbling, and toddled over to Stefan, tucking himself against Stefan's chest. As he did so, he continued to wail.

So, Stefan mused, Damon was not only a toddler in appearance, he seemed to have a toddler mentality too, unfortunately. It seemed unlikely he would get the answers he needed.

"Shh," he whispered, rubbing Damon's back. "It's okay. Don't cry."

As he continued, Damon calmed, laying his head against Stefan's chest and sticking a thumb in his mouth, sucking on it quietly.

"Elena?" Stefan called in a low voice, trying his best not to upset Damon again. "Can you come here?"

His girlfriend appeared quickly, her eyes widening as she saw the child in his arms. "Who's that?" she asked.

"Take a wild guess," he responded, standing up and scooping his brother into his arms. "Can you watch him for a minute? I'm going to see if there's anything in his room for him to wear, he can't stay in this T-shirt forever."

Nodding, Elena reached out for Damon, who went to her without a fight. Taking his thumb out of his mouth, he whispered, "Steffy mad at me, 'Lena?"

"I'm not angry at you, baby," Stefan said before Elena could answer. "I'm sorry, I'm just confused. I'll be right back, okay?"

Damon nodded and cuddled his head down on Elena's shoulder as she took a seat on the couch, wondering what on Earth there was to do about this.

Stefan hurried upstairs to Damon's bedroom, ignoring everything and heading to the closet. "Hopefully there's something in here…" he mumbled to himself. He dug around in the closet, finding mainly only black t-shirts, black jeans, and of course, his black leather jackets. Finally, his hands found something soft and warm-feeling. To his relief, he pulled out a heavy wool sweater, one that wouldn't seem like a dress on his now-baby brother.

He returned downstairs with the sweater and pulled the T-shirt off of Damon, putting the sweater over his head instead.

"Will we go get him new clothes later?" Elena asked. Damon reached for Stefan, who picked him up as he answered Elena with a nod.

"Hopefully he'll be back to normal soon though," he sighed. "I haven't got any idea how to take care of a baby."

Damon yawned, wrapping his little arms around Stefan's neck and cuddling himself tightly against his chest.

"I can help with that," Elena told him. "It can't be hard."

"Come on, Damon, naptime."

Big blue eyes looked up at him. "Steffy will stay?"

"Okay, I'll stay."

Damon nodded and fell quiet again as Stefan carried him upstairs with Elena following just behind him. He laid a now sleeping Damon on the big bed, tucking the heavy black comforter over the tiny body, and then, keeping his promise, he sat down beside him, brushing the ebony hair off Damon's forehead.

What was there to do now? How could he turn Damon back if he didn't have the faintest idea what had happened to him?

"Would Bonnie be able to figure it out?" Elena asked.

"Maybe…" That hadn't occurred to him. Well, of course… Bonnie was a witch, she would know! Rising to his feet slowly, he nodded.

"I'll go call her."

**Review Please.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you guys for reviewing and adding to favorites and alerts. I wasn't expecting such a big response to this fic, and it meant a lot to me. xx I love you all. **

**Enjoy.**

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**Chapter 2**

Damon watched Stefan and someone else, who Stefan and Elena called _Bonnie_, happily from the protective embrace of Elena's arms.

He was happy as long as he could see his brother.

"Steffy," he said, wanting him to come and hold him now.

"What, Damon?" he snapped.

"I want you to come and get me," he whispered, tears welling in his eyes. Why was Stefan being so mean now? Was it Bonnie's fault? Did Stefan not like him anymore?

"Not now, Damon. Hush. We're trying to help you."

Damon looked at the floor and didn't say anything else. He sat quietly for a while, then wriggled out of Elena's arms. "I go upstairs, 'Lena?" he asked, looking up at her. Elena nodded and smiled.

Damon made his slow, clumsy way upstairs and tried to climb onto Stefan's big bed, but he couldn't. Instead, he fell.

_Ow_!

His lower lip trembled as he fought back tears. Only _babies_ cried. He _wasn't_ a baby. He was a big boy.

But it hurt. His arm hurt.

His mouth opened and he let out a wail. "Steffy! It huwts!"

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"I can certainly sense some magic lingering," Bonnie said. "But I can't figure out how to undo it."

"Figure it out!" Stefan yelped, panicking. "I can't deal with this. I don't know how to raise a child."

"I think it will wear off on it's own," Bonnie told him, remaining calm for his sake. "It should, anyway."

"When?"

"From what I can see…" she pointed to the big book in front of her, to the page she'd been looking at. "When Damon is ready. He hasn't relied enough on other people, and apparently someone recognized that, so they decided to _force_ him to rely on others."

Stefan's jaw dropped in horror. "He'll never accept that, Bonnie, never."

"He has to, or the spell won't wear off," was her answer. "Besides, if he's not himself, then perhaps he will."

As Stefan started to answer, he was interrupted by a wail from upstairs.

"_Steffy_! It _huwts_!"

Stefan wasn't sure he'd ever moved so fast in his life as he raced upstairs. "Damon?"

Damon sat on the floor of Stefan's room, face red and eyes swimming with tears, tears also rolling down his cheeks. His left arm hung at an awkward angle, and Stefan assumed that was the reason for his crying. In a heartbeat, he had Damon in his arms and was carrying him downstairs.

"What happened?" Elena cried.

"I think he broke his arm," Stefan said, taking him out the door and to the car—he had to get him to a hospital, that much he knew.

"How?"

"I don't know." He didn't look up, busy settling a sobbing Damon in the backseat of the car. No car seat, unfortunately, so if they ran into a police officer, he would be forced to Influence them.

Elena, sensing Stefan's inner turmoil, noticing his distraction, quickly got into the passenger seat and quit asking questions.

"Steffy, it _huwts_!" Damon wailed again.

"I know, baby, I know. It'll stop hurting soon." Slamming the door of the backseat shut, he hastily got in the driver's seat and started the car.

"Wan' you!"

"I know, Damon, but you have to wait. I have to get you to a hospital."

"No!" Damon yelled.

"What?"

"No hosp'tal! No hosp'tal!" he screeched.

"Why no hospital, baby? What's the matter?"

"No like hosp'tals!" With that, Damon burst into tears. But Stefan couldn't exactly do anything about it while he was driving, so he was forced to just let Damon cry.

"No! No hosp'tal!" he howled.

"Stop screaming, right now."

That brought no response, Damon just kept sobbing, his gasping breaths choked. _What on Earth is wrong with him?_ Stefan wondered. _What does he have against hospitals?_

"Damon, shut up!" he finally snapped, unable to deal with the screaming.

Instant silence.

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**Well... hope you enjoyed it. Also, in case you didn't catch on, Damon can't pronounce his 'r's. :P Also, his reason for hating hospitals is to be revealed later.**

**Review, please. I like to see your thoughts.  
**


	3. Chapter 3

**I seriously love you guys. Thanks for the reviews. xxx**

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It was as Stefan had feared- Damon's arm was broken. Once it was set and in a cast, they started home again. This time, the child was silent all the way home, but Stefan didn't think anything of it.

They arrived safely home. He picked Damon up and carried him back to the house, setting him on the sofa.

"Do you want a cookie, little one?" he questioned.

Damon shook his head no, holding out his good arm in the typical "up" gesture.

"Are you sure?" he asked, lifting Damon in his arms again. The child laid his head on Stefan's shoulder and nodded. Stefan had to admit, the silence was getting a little unnerving.

"Are you tired?"

Damon shrugged.

"Why won't you say anything?"

"I don't know," he mumbled. "I just don't wanna…"

"Does your arm hurt?"

"Yeah, but not as bad as it did, Steffy."

Stefan sighed. "Well… come on, let's get you to bed. Alright?"

"Okay, Steffy." Damon tightened his grip on Stefan's shirt. "Will you stay wit me?"

"Of course I will, at least for a while."

"Not all night?" Blue eyes widened, looking up as Stefan in a confused way, confused but still adorable, he had to say.

"I'll try, Damon." Adjusting his hold carefully, he began carrying the toddler up the stairs.

"You has to stay all night."

"Okay, I'll stay all night. Calm down."

Damon seemed to settle, thankfully. He passively allowed Stefan to change him into a T-shirt that was far too big, and then settle him into bed under the covers.

"Elena will take you shopping tomorrow for clothes that fit you." He took a seat on the edge of the bed.

Lifting his hand to rub at his heavy eyes, Damon seemed to consider this seriously, and Stefan choked down an amused chuckle. "And you come too?"

"Maybe. We'll see."

Damon nodded and closed his eyes.

"Steffy?"

"Yes, baby."

"I love you."

A warm feeling stole over Stefan.

"I love you too, buddy."

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**Hope you enjoyed.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

**Pure fluff, childish fears, and drama.**

Damon began to scream and cry that night. "Mommmaaaaa!" he wept, his cries echoing down the hall from his bedroom.

I jumped up from my bed, abandoning the warmth, and hurried down the hallway to his room. "Damon?"

He'd obviously just woken up, and was looking around with tear-filled eyes, while more tears streaked down his face. "Mommaaaaaaa!"

"Damon?"

"Steffy, make Momma come back." He lifted his arms in his "up" gesture. "She was there-" he pointed at the wall, and then sniffed—"But now she's gone."

"You were dreaming, baby, she was never here."

"Oh yes she was." He widened his eyes for emphasis. "And she smiled and said she loves me."

"You were dreaming."

"It couldn't have been a dream, Steffy." He pouted, blue eyes indignant.

"But it was."

Damon scowled moodily and then nuzzled his head on my shoulder. "You is a big_ fat _liar, Steffy."

"That's not nice," I said, but privately thought it was still adorable. "Now come and lie back down, it's still nighttime."

"No, it isn't!" His head popped up from my shoulder.

"Yes it is, and you need to go back to sleep or you'll be cranky in the morning. It's only one in the morning."

"See!" he cried. "You just said it's morning!"

Gently prying his tiny fingers loose from my shirt, I laid him back on the bed, ignoring his struggles and furious squirming. "Good night, Damon."

He glared at me and kept his eyes wide open.

"I'm going to my room now, okay?"

No answer.

"So again, goodnight. You better go to sleep." I switched off his light and left the room.

Not five minutes later—

"Mommmmmaaaa!"

It was going to be a long night.

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**Short, yes, and not a great chapter. Thoughts? **


	5. AN

Um. Having a bit of writers block here, guys. Please review or send me a PM with any ideas you may have? I'm stuck.


	6. Chapter 5

**Thank you, wonderful readers, for sticking with this and for all the amazing ideas. Some of those might come into play later on. I hope the lack of updates didn't cause too much loss of interest here. **

**So here is a slightly longer (to make up for the wait) and hopefully enjoyable chapter for you.**

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The next day found me bringing a very cranky Damon to the store with Elena. The plan had been for only Elena to take him, but it didn't work out well when he flatly refused to go to her by himself, apparently 'scared' of her.

I was just as cranky as he was. I had not wanted to go to the store today—I had been counting on a quiet day at home while Damon was out with her.

Reaching the store, I got out, slamming the door and going to get Damon. Making matters worse, when I picked him up he grabbed my ear and twisted, laughing in a way I would normally find adorable. This time, though, I just found it extremely irritating. I pulled his hand off my ear.

"Damon," I said carefully, not wanting to lose my temper, "it's not nice to yank on people's ears. Okay?"

His lip thrust out in a pout but he nodded. "Okay Steffy," he mumbled.

I sat him in the front of one of the carts and let Elena push it through the store, following behind her. Damon's eyes stayed locked on me. He was nervous about having me not right next to him. I huffed.

She headed straight for the toddler section for clothes, humming softly under her breath.

"What kind of clothes do you want him to have, Stefan?" she asked, looking around.

"Anything that will fit him," I answered.

"Steffy! Steffy!" Damon squealed.

"What?" I looked up, he was pointing at something with great enthusiasm, jabbing his finger at it.

"Want it! Want it! Please, Steffy, please!"

He was pointing at a child-sized black leather jacket.

Really?!

"No, Damon."

"Want! Want! Want!"

"No!"

Elena saw it just then, and laughed, taking it off the hanger. "What is it with you and black, Damon?" she chuckled and shook her head.

"Not that, Elena. Don't you think he has enough of those?"

"Yes, but in adult sizes. Who knows when he'll be an adult again?" She was having him try it on, a fond smile on her face. "Let him enjoy childhood while it lasts."

"Elena-"

"Don't 'Elena' me." She was enjoying this far too much. Smugness practically radiated from her. "You left me in charge of this. Look," she said, gesturing to Damon, "it fits him perfectly." With that, she took it off him and dropped it into the cart. "Now no more out of you until we're done!"

If you ask me, she went a little overboard. When we left the store, Damon had six new shirts—a long sleeved gray one, a blue T-shirt, a Winnie the Pooh shirt, one with a monkey on it that was also long-sleeved, and two black ones. To add to this, he had two pairs of jeans and an orange sweatshirt, as well as his black leather jacket.

Again, really?

And that was just clothes. Now she was insisting on bringing him to the toy store, something he was very excited about.

"Can't this wait, Elena?"

"Don't you_ want_ him to be happy, Stefan?"

"Of course, but why does he need toys right now?"

Elena glared at me through the rearview mirror and pulled into the parking lot. I chose to stay in the car.

They came back half an hour later with nothing other than a giant stuffed elephant and a few toy cars and trucks.

"30 minutes for that?"

"Yes," she said, starting the car. "He couldn't decide if he wanted the elephant or the giraffe, you know." She shrugged in a what-can-I-do-about-it way. I ground my teeth.

"Are we going home now?"

"Yes, Damon is tired."

Thank God. Finally.

That was a long day.

"And then tomorrow, we'll take him to the park to feed ducks!" she said, delighted with this new idea.

Oh God.

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**Thoughts?**


	7. Chapter 6

**[A/N] This will be written in 1****st**** Person, pretty much Stefan's POV, from now on unless I change my mind. I keep forgetting to do it in 3****rd**** and I'm not gonna try anymore. Here it is, a little badly written but longer than usual and hopefully interesting and enjoyable.**

**I apologize for the wait.**

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**Chapter 6**

I was woken in the middle of the night pretty suddenly, and at first, I wasn't sure what had woken me. I sighed, listening for Damon to start crying, remembering his cries for our mother only last night.

Nothing came just yet.

I closed my eyes and started to fall back asleep, assuming it had been a nightmare of some sort—

CRASH.

Whispers.

Leaping to my feet in an instant, I hurried down the hall to Damon's room, panicking somewhat.

"Damon?"

A wail came. I burst through his door.

But he wasn't there.

His window was open, curtains fluttering out. Glass littered the floor.

Without a second thought, I charged out the window, just in time to see them flee.

With my brother.

"Damon," I snarled, and went after them.

One of them glanced over his shoulder, shouted something in alarm, and ran faster. In one lunge I had him on the ground.

The others, foolishly, stopped to help him. Looking at them, I knew they were no more than children, to me. They hadn't been vampires long. Nonetheless, for this, I was going to kill them.

I snapped this one's neck so that he fell limp, and then I moved off him, looking to the others, who seemed to be frozen.

"Don't move or you will get the same he did."

One, a petite female, nodded quickly, her blue eyes filled with tears.

"P-please don't," she wailed.

"Quiet." I looked around for Damon. Where was he?

"Where's my brother?" I rubbed a hand over my face. "Where is he, damn it?"

"I-I," the girl looked frightened, but I found I couldn't conjure up any sympathy for her. "I threw him when y-you knocked down C-Charles. I got scared."

That did it for me. I was angry and tired and I wanted to know my brother was safe.

I ripped a branch off one of the trees and plunged it into her chest.

Her mouth opened in a soundless cry, eyes going wide, and then her skin greyed at a rapid pace. She collapsed to the ground. Knowing she was dead, I tore the branch from her chest and stabbed the other male with it. I finished with the one whose neck I'd broken.

Now to find my brother, I decided, forgetting to dispose of the bodies. I would do that later.

Blood.

I could smell blood, now that my enraged haze had cleared. I followed the scent hurriedly, sensing that I needed to find him.

The tiny broken form on the ground didn't look like little Damon.

Yet it did, somehow.

Yet it was him.

I didn't know what to do. How was I to help him? Kneeling beside him, I inhaled sharply at the sight of all the injuries marring his small body.

"Damon."

Miraculously, he was still conscious.

"Steffy," he whispered, the sound barely audible even to my ears. "It huwts."

"I'm going to—I'm going to help you, buddy. Okay?"

Carefully, I lifted him up and in a matter of seconds (vampire speed), we were at the house. I lowered his body into the backseat.

Hospital? I wondered. They would ask questions about how it happened.

Ideas, stories, ran through my mind.

He fell off the bed.

That wouldn't explain the cuts and gashes and such.

He was sleepwalking and fell down the stairs. Crashed into a china cabinet.

Not good enough.

But no one would know how to help him, other than at the hospital! I let out a low growl.

They would just have to take that answer, and if they didn't, I would Influence them.

As Damon let out a little whimper, I started the car. Pushing it to as great a speed as I dared, we sped off toward the hospital.

I burst through the emergency doors upon reaching it, Damon wrapped in my arms, bloody face pressed to my chest.

"Help! Help!" I shouted.

The next few seconds were blurred to me. Damon was taken from me, rushed off into another room. A nice woman led me to the row of chairs against the wall and sat me down on one of the hard seats. She said something but I didn't process it, so she repeated it. I heard as if from underwater.

_Is he your son? _

_Yeah, _I told her, _he's just two._

_Oh no! What happened to him?_

_Sleepwalking… fell against the china cabinet. Knocked it over on himself. _

_Oh no! _she exclaimed. _I hope he's alright, sir. _

I didn't remember anything else.

Then came the tedious hours of waiting. Or was it hours? It could've been minutes, days, weeks.

I saw the doctor come out, he said Damon's name, I stood and went to him.

Taking a deep breath, he gave me the news.

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**[****A/N] Hm. Wonder if Damon's alright. ;)**

**Let me know what you think, lovelies. **


	8. Chapter 7

**Yes it has been forever and a day since my last update.**

**Yes, this is a short chapter.**

**The next should be somewhat longer.**

**Chapter 7**

"Here we are," I said softly, so as not to startle Damon, who was sitting quietly in the backseat. "We're home, buddy."

He didn't say anything.

Getting out of the car, I opened his door. Making sure my movements were slow, I carefully picked him up.

Damon was traumatized.

He would get so nervous so quickly and easily. And when he did, he would often burst into tears, or even fly into a flashback. It frightened me to death, and I was terrified he wouldn't be able to come back from them if it continued.

"See?" I continued talking to him as I carried him toward the house, touching his back lightly, as if he was a skittish horse that had to be reminded of my presence. "Everything's alright, buddy. We'll just get you inside. Do you want to go to bed for a nap or stay up?"

There was a long silence.

That was another thing Damon didn't like now.

He didn't want to talk, and so he did not like direct questions. I persisted in asking them, in the hope that it would help him get over this problem.

I began to feel defeated as the silence stretched on.

"I want to stay up," he finally answered, his voice small. "I don't have to take a nap, do I, Steffy?'

"No, baby, that's why I gave you the option."

He nodded and hid his face in my neck.

Back to the silence now—I sat him down on the couch. Abruptly, there was a knock at the door and I rushed to answer.

Alaric.


End file.
